I suppose you can widen it out to include Test Match Special, and online BBC commentators if you want, but primarily aimed at Sky.

For years they have constantly banged on about the need for change- whether it is turning county cricket upside down, or calling for players and coaches to be dropped.

But why do they never apply this logic to themselves?

Bob Willis always calling for change, and shaking things up, to avoid things getting stale- so why not apply that logic to Willis and all the others? Gower will be 60 next week, and most of them are just above or below the 60 mark.

Colville, Gower, Lloyd, Allot, Botham, Willis,- It's getting very tired and stale (well that's what they'd be saying about a team that hasn't changed its key personnel in 20 years) Atherton and Hussain have also been around for quite a while- but they could stay as the 'experienced' ones. I've got half an idea Holding might have retired at the end of last summer.

Still- if Sky don't get all, or some of the new contract, it will be 'All change' anyway.

Having heard the commentary of that final game of season and made some feelings clear I would agree Rob Key is good. Bumble is excellent and very funny at times. If find Nasser a bit dry but sound with his analysis.

Boring Bob Willis has to go. Charles Orville is often clueless. I find Paul (not) Allott to much into liking big words and not engaging.

SKY definitely should look for new talent. Haven't heard him but glad James Taylor has showed some potential.

I feel there should always be a professional journalist/presenter as the anchor. Without this it just becomes more of an old boys club than it already is, and searching questions don't get asked. Colville, at present, does this adequately but perhaps time for a change.
Bumble is good value and was very succinct in describing Kev's dancing at the Stanford series many years ago.
I quite enjoy Paul Allot's contributions as well as Atherton and surprisingly Hussain. Don't feel Botham adds much to the party, perhaps he is just there for the party.

As far as TMS goes, I usually switch off if Blofeld is commentating especially if paired with Swann. I respected CMJ's work who more than proved the professional journalist has a role to play

I'm not that bothered about that. Because of the time difference, apart from Perth test, I never saw much of the Ashes in Oz live anyway.

I do seem to remember Botham once said scornfully, 'That would have missed a second set' (of stumps) only for the replay to show it clipping leg stump. A prolonged period of silence, plus a little bit of off air giggling (from Hussain, I think) followed.

It will be interesting to see what BT’s coverage of the 2017/18 Ashes will be like. The winter just gone was their first as rights-holders of cricket from Australia, and the commentary used for the international matches and the Big Bash was the same as that received by those viewing from Australia. For the international matches, they also provided punditry from a studio in Stratford, although no punditry was provided for the Big Bash.

I think BT saw the winter just gone as preparation for the Ashes, for which they will certainly provide more resources. I don’t think BT or their viewers would like the commentary to consist of just the usual Channel 9 commentators, so BT will surely either send their own team or they will provide some commentators for Channel 9. However, sending their own team would mean finding some pundits who didn’t work for them in 2016/17 (perhaps by raiding Sky), while providing some commentators for Channel 9 would of course need the permission of that channel, which would be a bit of an achievement considering they have historically not invited commentators from the tourists into their team.

I agree with many about Willis and I also think that Botham has turned into a latter day Fred Trueman, ie once a great player, but hopeless at modern commentary. I like Lloyd and Atherton and again, Rob Key and James Taylor are looking good for the future.

I'm afraid I find Swann on TMS rather irritating, but I do very much enjoy Ed Smith. I also agree that a journalist angle, a la Arlott, CMJ is refreshing; they have much more akin with us, the viewer/listener

Interpreter duly translates question- but Hussain clearly isn't interested in the replies (and assumes the english speaking audience won't be either) as he doesn't bother asking the interpreter what the player actually said, and keeps proceeding with the next question.

He hasn't fronted any of the domestic cricket this season, and tonight 'The Verdict' is hosted by David Gower, and obviously recorded a couple of hours ago at Lords, rather than in the studio. So- Is it a cost cutting measure, and Charles Colvile is no longer part of the team? I hope he not ill. Nothing on internet at all, but have realised he hasn't been seen since before the start of the season.

I hadn’t paid much attention to the fact Charles Colvile hasn’t been seen this season. I know that sometimes people make jokes about him, but the fact he has been with Sky since 1990 means that he would not deserve to depart the network unceremoniously.

I didn’t think much at the time when Nick Knight presented coverage of last Saturday's Royal London Cup final, but looking back, it seems strange for probably the second biggest day in the county calendar to be presented by someone with little previous presenting experience.

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